Another Affaire Ngulu

I should really be writing about the arrest of another journalist in Rwanda. Or the aftershocks of the Kampala bombings. Or even the Congolese army operations against the ADF-NALU, which have displaced 20,000 people around Beni. All in due course.

Because today there are other important matters to catch up with. Felix Wazekwa, aka Le Monstre, has been arrested! Yes, that's right, the musician who inspired Kabila to put a grey streak in his beard, the inimitable Congolese musician of Faux Moto Moko Boye and Yo Nani fame, was sentenced to two years in Belgian prison this last week. Ok, so he's in Kinshasa and unlikely to return to Belgium anytime soon (he once said: "I don't care much about Belgium, it's a small country, 40 times smaller than the Congo. Who cares?"), but it is yet another indictment of Congolese musicians.

His crime: Smuggling people into Europe as members of his band in 2004. Other Congolese musicians have done this before, it's called "Affaire Ngulu" (A pig's affair) because they ship people like animals. Papa Wemba was convicted of the same crime some years ago and had to serve time in France.

Other Congolese musicians have also been in the press of late for the wrong reasons. Koffi Olomide has been cited in the Congolese blogosphere for being charged with rape in France last year. Let's hope it's not true.

Now back to the real news.